If Only They Knew
by xxDibDabxx
Summary: The stars are a mystery to us all, those suns that burns galaxies away and have the power to shine their light on us, even though we are a world they can't see. Do they mean to connect two hearts that are destinied for each other? Merlin/Arthur
1. Part One

**If Only They Knew**

**A cute little one-shot based on how the two sides of the coin can't help but connect even when they don't realise they are. No spoilers as far as I know, and I revolve around the idea of the stars connecting them, so. Merlin/Arthur, obviously. Enjoy, and don't forget to review x**

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Not for the first time, Camelot had suffered an unexpected heat-wave. The sun had been cruel, and drowned the kingdom in heat, desperate to force all chill away into the neighbouring lands. But, the people had suffered. Merlin had suffered. It had been one stressful day for him.

The villagers had been coming to Gaius all day with sunstroke, heat rashes and severe dehydration. It had been Merlin's job to assist the physician, to help with the patients and to search the surrounding forests for herbs that hadn't been starved of nutrients. However, it had also been Merlin's job to aid Arthur, be the manservant he was. The prince was in a bad mood due to the unnatural torridity, and to his lack of sleep because of the heat, and because of the unquenchable dryness of his mouth. And Merlin was his whipping boy for the day. Yet, the warlock didn't blame him for it; he was just being Arthur the prat.

And then, Merlin had to cope with the never-ending heat. With the burning on the back of his neck, and the blazing in his throat, and the constant sweating. It was enough to drive him mad.

That's why, when evening came and the sun left, finally letting Camelot cool, the kingdom sighed. And Merlin sighed, leaning his head against the cool glass of his chamber's window. True, it was still too warm for him to sleep, and behind him, his bed was a pile of twisted covers that had been thrown on the floor, so it matched his untidy room.

He was sat on his window-ledge, directly in the rays of moonlight that illuminated the shadows of his room, all light having been extinguished. Gazing out into the cloudless night, he did feel frustration, knowing that the lack of rain would mean tomorrow would be as full of drought as the previous day.

But, he pushed that to the back of his mind, and instead, his gaze focused on the sky. A canvas of inky night, blotted with blazing stars, shining constellations in shapes of mystic creatures and historical characters, all so stunning and ancient that they had watched the world blossom and grow. Pressing his thumb and forefinger together, he held the shape of circle he'd made with his left hand against the window, and, as always, the sight of thousands of stars in that tiny space took his breath away.

Merlin adored the stars. Such powerful, mysterious lights, burning billions of light years away. Only the heavens knew if they held life like the warlock's world. He liked how they were lights in the dark. How they brought hope.

But, although no one else knew it, that wasn't the only reason he loved the stars.

You see, you had the stars. And then you had Arthur Pendragon, heir to the throne of Camelot and hero to the people. Every time Merlin looked into Arthur emerald pools, he saw whole constellations no one else saw. Creating the form of a great king, full of compassion and strength, with a heart of gold and a wise mind. He too would one day bring hope, and be a light in the dark.

It was because of Arthur that Merlin loved the stars. And, little did he know, that at that moment when he gazed up at the shining orbs and thought of the prince, that the prince was staring up and thinking of him.

Standing by his window, and leaning against his chamber wall, with his arms crossed across his chest, Arthur found himself looking up, through the stained glass window, and up into the night sky. Self-luminous celestial bodies, their light glimmering against his pale skin from galaxies away.

He knew his manservant was obsessed with those stars, as he always caught him glancing up at them when Merlin was in his chambers in the evening. Often, when they were out hunting, Merlin would watch the stars before he went to sleep, and, although the warlock didn't notice, Arthur would watch him watch the sky.

Personally, Arthur didn't get what was so great about them. They were just lights. True, they were good, but not amazing. Not majestic. Not mind blowing and bewitching. Just nice. Although, he guessed that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Although, maybe they were a bit fascinating. Well, no one knew anything about them. They could be weaved from magic, with sorcery being their very core, transmitting its power onto others, gifts from above. Or they could be the fragments of those lost to the darkness afterwards, pieces of their souls that still shined onto the world below.

And this got Arthur thinking. And believing. The people of his life that he never lived were up there, if the stars really were souls, the people that should have been in his childhood. He imagined his mother was the brightest, smiling at him because he had never seen her smile. The kings of the past, his ancestors, would be up there. With their eyes of accusation.

Arthur imagined he would be up there one day, watching his own kin as they ruled a new world long after him. His blood and name would go on, and he could watch it as a star above. Arthur would be in the stars.

The prince didn't fear death, even if it meant he wouldn't be a star in the sky, and he would be nothing. Didn't fear the pain, or the darkness. Didn't fear the waiting for death to take him. Although, Arthur did fear being alone.

The need for someone, the desperation of feeling someone's hand in his, of knowing he could face this with someone by his side. That was what Arthur wanted. And, although he didn't realise, he'd already found it. For this very reason, subconsciously, his thoughts turned to Merlin.

Would he be a star before the warlock? Would Merlin be a star before him? Seeing them in front of him, he couldn't imagine it. Merlin – stupid, brave, foolish, trustworthy and hopelessly loyal but thoughtless Merlin – with all the power of the heavens? Ha. What would the world come to?

Arthur couldn't imagine Merlin with that power in his eyes, seeing his sapphires glow amber like the stars of the night sky. It seemed so odd. Yet, part of him smiled quietly. It seemed so right.

And so, the night wore on, and the boys stayed looking at the stars. Who would think that things such as stars, so very far away from the world, could connect two strands of the rope of fate? And who'd have thought the most powerful warlock and the greatest king that ever lived would have fallen so pointlessly in love? And who'd have thought it would all be a river of secrets? If only they knew.


	2. Part Two

**If Only They Knew**

**A/N: As suggested by LiveLoud, I have turned this into a two-shot. It's fluffy and cute :D Enjoy and don't forget to review x **

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True, Merlin enjoyed watching the stars from behind a sheet of glass in the safety of his chamber. But, nothing could compare to being high up and outside in the brittle, sharpness of the midnight wind where the true beauty of the celestial creatures we call stars could be admired and ogled.

Sighing, that very warlock smiled, looking up and loosing himself in the thousands of them, all shining down on him and bathing him in a light he couldn't see. He as lying on the roof just outside one of the many balconies of Camelot castle. He didn't know whether he was allowed up there or not, but, he didn't care. This was often where he came to think. Sometimes, the stars really were the only things that understood his worries and troubles.

His arms behind his head, and his ankles crossed over each other, Merlin was surprisingly comfortable. This position, however, made it so that he did not hear the stranger as they stepped onto the balcony below him. And so he did not hear them balance themselves on the railing of the balcony, and then jumped onto the roof.

It also meant that Merlin was slow in sitting up, and so Arthur had a chance to compose his shocked and embarrassed face, complete with a suppressed blush, into one of blank annoyance. Sapphire and emerald stared at each other for a moment, before Merlin broke an unexpected silence,

"Sire" he greeted, lying back carelessly, and causing a smile to play across the prince's lips. Arthur dropped down beside Merlin and lay back in a similar way. The warlock peered at him in the corner of his eyes curiously for a moment, before replying, "I'm surprised to see you up here".

"I could say the same thing," replied the blonde-haired royal, before meeting his manservant's honest gaze,

"Oh, I just come up here for the stars. You know, those shiny dots up there that you find so boring," the warlock teased and Arthur rolled his eyes,

"Yeah, really. I had no idea what they were. I just came up here because I find the roof so comfortable," he replied sarcastically. Smirking, Merlin answered, puzzling at Arthur's words,

"So, you came up here to look at the stars too, then?" Rather flushed, the prince replied,

"Well. I wouldn't say I came up here to look at them, just, to see what all the fuss was about. Since you announced your undying love for them, I got curious. I mean, well, not just because of you. Just-" he peered sideways at a smirking Merlin, who was raising one eyebrow, "Oh, shut up, Merlin". Finished the prince aggressively, shifting positions slightly.

Merlin laughed at how Gwen-like the prince sounded, irritating Arthur as he did.

"As you wish, _Arthur_". Rolling his eyes, the blonde-noble smiled again, thinking it went unseen by his manservant. It seemed Merlin was one of the only people who actually stood up to the spoilt, occasionally obnoxious prince and told him when he was being a prat and when his ego had found new limits. And, although the manservant didn't know it, Arthur actually respected him for his blind, idiotic courage.

Arthur looked across the sea of lights, but not the stars. His kingdom. What would one day be his kingdom. Princes tend to become kings, you see. Arthur used to think being king would be a brilliant thing, with no one to tell him what to do and with the power to have anything he wanted. But childish dreams soon faded with age, and, to tell the truth, Arthur didn't want to become king.

Everyone was always saying, 'and one day, you'll be a great king'. Always making big assumptions that the prince would have to live up to. The blonde-haired royal didn't know if he actually could. Not alone.

Merlin looked up again, tearing his eyes away from Arthur, and found that a thick fog had begun to roll in from nowhere, sudden and unwanted. Frowning, Merlin wondered where such a thing had suddenly appeared from. Flicking his eyes back to Arthur, he noticed the prince was staring, troubled, into the distance. But, not at the sky.

Merlin figured he hadn't seen the cover of pearly water-vapour, and didn't think before he acted. Merlin never did. His gaze fell onto the sky, and he awakened the powerful magic deep inside him, forcing it to boil and rise, and this time, he didn't hold out his hand to channel it. Instead, he did something he rarely let happen. He trusted the sorcery. After all, it was a part of him.

You see, his magic could do whatever it pleased without the warlock using words or body language to guide it. Emotions and instincts usually caused these issues, and, they had resulted in trouble before.

Arthur didn't know why, but something turned his gaze back to the familiar stranger beside him. Merlin seemed to twist uncomfortably, before his eyes set straight in front of him. The prince saw the fog out the corner of his eye. Where had that come from?

Amber sparks in his eyes, drowning out the sapphire, one of the only signs that Merlin was using magic. He seemed to smile, almost darkly, as he felt the warmth of power left him. The fog seemed to retreat, in an unworldly way, moving backwards and disappearing in the same mysterious way it had appeared. When, again, the night sky had become the clear inky canvas, dotted with beautiful orbs, the blue richness returned to the manservant's eyes and Merlin smiled to himself happily.

Arthur stared at Merlin, unknown to the warlock, in horrified shock. He knew what he had just seen was in no way a mistake. No trick of the light and no freaky coincidence.

Merlin had just used magic.

It seemed so impossible. Merlin. A sorcerer? Idiotic, clumsy and utterly hopeless Merlin? But, the prince had seen it. Just watched it happen. Merlin had moved the clouds away, and without any incarnations! He must be the most powerful sorcerer Arthur had seen.

His father had drilled in into his head ever since he was young that those that practice in magic intend only to use it for their own greedy advantage. To use it for revenge, or for power, or money or whatever else it was they wanted, and never used it for the good of people. Magic could stop poverty, and starvation. It could make the world a better place, if it didn't poison a person's heart. Magic users had only ever tried to hurt and kill the prince.

Yet, subconsciously, Arthur found no way to fit Merlin into that category. Into that group of people. As foolish as he was, he was an honest and innocent fool. For god's sake, he tried to save a unicorns life! Can there be a person more pure of heart? It all fit. All those times Merlin had saved him. And the prince had been so blind.

It was Merlin. Merlin was his saviour. His 'guardian angel' as his father put it.

Looking away quickly, Arthur was still rough with shock. So, when Merlin glanced at Arthur, it seemed to him that the blonde-haired royal was oblivious to everything, as per usual. Although, he seemed even more troubled now,

"What's wrong?" asked the manservant and Arthur would have laughed had it not been for the seriousness of the situation,

"Nothing…" he replied but he voice didn't convince even himself. Merlin's eyebrows knitted together,

"Liar," he replied shortly, but dropped the subject none the less. If Arthur didn't want to talk, then Arthur _didn't want to talk_. Both boys settled back, Merlin as clueless as always and Arthur tense and sharp. A thousand thoughts drilled through his mind, and, abruptly, channeled them to stream into one, single question.

"Merlin?"

"Um?"

"Would you ever lie to me?"

The warlock gazed sideways, coming out of his exhausted daydreaming as he watched the sky above, and frowning. There was something in the prince's voice, such a vulnerable rawness about it that it frightened Merlin. Something _was _wrong. He knew it.

"Arthur Pendragon," he replied, almost laughing and catching the very person's attention, "I would willingly give my life for you in an instant. I would willingly spend the rest of my life washing your socks and sharpening your sword without as much as a thank you. I would even kill for you. I would do almost anything, and you wouldn't have to ask, let alone order it done. Not for your kingdom, and not for what you'll do when the time is right, but just because it is you, sire".

The prince listened on, his stomach churning, yet his breathing perfectly calm. Merlin continued,

"However, despite all of that. Yes. Yes, I would lie to you. Not by choice, no, never by choice," he seemed to convincing himself more then Arthur at this point, "But, if I needed to. If it were dire, then I would," He glanced up to the prince, smiling gently with his eyes and no longer smirking, while the prince blinked with a strange emotion the warlock couldn't read, "And I would hope that you would understand".

True, Merlin wouldn't tell the prince the truth, but not because he didn't trust him. He was the prince of Camelot, and the risk was still too great. Short and simple.

Arthur looked at the stars, and he seemed to settle. What Merlin had said – so honest and real – that the prince found it, in a terrifying way, strangely soothing. He had the feeling that Merlin was using magic – the very thing that had always threatened Arthur – to protect him. And he was controlling it, he was using it and it wasn't poisoning his heart of sending him blind with greed. It was just a part of him, like his soul or his mind. Arthur felt safe, lay beside that impossible boy.

So, yet again, it seemed those angels above that shined down smiled to no another, knowing they had again brought together two lights in the dark. That evening, Prince Arthur discovered the truth about the greatest warlock in history, and never told Merlin that was the night he stumbled upon the secret, as unwell kept as it was. And Merlin admitted a secret, so deep and dark that he himself had trouble believing it as it spilled off his tongue, about what he would do for his heart. Correction, what he had done. And Arthur didn't even click. The stupidity of heroes. If only they knew…

The stars actually began to wonder if they had to do everything themselves. But, of course, they did nothing. Right?


End file.
